Renovated Rialto opens with indie rock, bluegrass bang

Minneapolis indie rock band Hippo Campus kicks off the grand reopening of Bozeman’s Rialto with a performance on Jan. 16. PHOTOS COURTESY OF THE RIALTO BOZEMAN

EBS STAFF

On Tuesday, Jan. 16, the doors of the newly renovated Rialto theater in downtown Bozeman will open to welcome throngs of concert-goers, who will likely be equally as excited to see Hippo Campus perform as they are to experience the long-anticipated revival of the historic, art deco theater.

With a sound described as “blissful indie rock” by Rolling Stone magazine, the Minnesota-based Hippo Campus is the first in an exciting lineup of musical acts on the Rialto’s 2018 docket.

Hippo Campus’ trajectory continues to steadily ascend, playing to over-capacity crowds at Bonnaroo and Lollapalooza music festivals, as well as headlining the Minnesota State Fair in their hometown. In addition to a slew of tour dates in 2018, the band recently dropped their “warm glow” EP which features the fan favorite song, “baseball.”

“We had wanted to start writing and recording again after [touring], and these songs were staring us in the face ever since our first wave writing sessions for [debut album] “Landmark,” guitarist/vocalist Nathan Stocker said. “It’d be a lie to say we had this EP figured out from the beginning, but plans are overrated anyhow.”

BBC Radio 1’s Huw Stephens has said Hippo Campus is “phenomenal live” and “one of the best bands in the United States.”

The doors open for this show at 7 p.m. with music beginning at 8 p.m.

On Jan. 17, versatile “Bass Ace” Victor Wooten takes the Rialto stage on night two of the venue’s reincarnation.

The following evening, on Jan. 17, the Rialto welcomes five-time Grammy winner Victor Wooten, who hit the worldwide music scene in 1990 as a founding member of the super-group Bela Fleck and the Flecktones. He has also become widely known for his own Grammy-nominated solo recordings, and tours with the Victor Wooten Trio.

Wooten started performing in nightclubs and theaters as the bassist of his family band at age 5, and at age 6, was on tour with his brothers opening shows for legendary soul artist Curtis Mayfield. Soon after, he was affectionately known as the 8-year-old “Bass Ace,” and before graduating high school, he and his brothers had shared the stage with artists such as War, Ramsey Lewis, and The Temptations.

He has won every major award given to a bass guitarist, including being voted Bassist of the Year in Bass Player Magazine’s readers poll three times—the only person to win it more than once. In 2011, Rolling Stone magazine voted Wooten one of the top 10 bassists of all time.

The doors open for this show at 7:30 p.m. with the Victor Wooten Trio beginning at 8:30 p.m.